


Group Projects

by orphan_account



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Crushes, Happy Ending, Kissing, M/M, One Shot, Pining, Sculpture, Stand Alone, Touching, art class, group projects
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-11
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2019-01-29 16:32:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12634875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Tsukishima Kei has to pair up with a partner for a sculpting project for an art class, but when Kuroo Tetsurou volunteers to partner up with him, he soon learns group projects are more troublesome than he originally thought.





	Group Projects

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MidnightRaven](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightRaven/gifts).



G _roup projects._

There was something about them Tsukishima hated. The way everyone rushed around the room, talking loudly and sitting with their friends, it was more of a way to slack off and gossip than anything else.

He heard the professor utter the words only a few moments ago, _pair up with someone for a sculpting project_. Tsukishima could already feel a gnawing pain in his stomach as he pondered over a solution, a headache soon coming to him as he furrowed his eyebrows.

Group projects had always been the worst for introverted people, people like him. Tsukishima always worked best alone, even in opportunities where he could have a partner, he found it better to work without one, easier for their personalities not to clash that way.

Tsukishima always dreaded when he was pretty much forced to work with someone he didn't know or care about. It wasn't fair to either of them, and he wasn't exactly the type to seem overly approachable to his peers. Tsukishima couldn't even fathom the idea of who he would get stuck with today. Maybe Bokuto, Akaashi, or…?

“Tsukki!” A familiar voice echoed from beside him, and it only took a matter of seconds before Tsukishima saw that mess of a bedhead walking in his direction.

Kuroo Tetsurou.

Or as Tsukishima liked to call him, the very cute thorn in his side.  The so annoyingly cute classmate and borderline friend that never left Tsukishima alone. He strongly disliked him but in the best way possible. Kuroo was just the right amount of annoying, but Tsukishima loved to see that annoying face of his everyday, so much so that he could feel his face start to heat up as he got closer and closer.

“Tsukki, let’s work together.” Kuroo repeated his name again, sending a chill down Tsukishima’s spine as Kuroo walked over and placed his bag on the long, white table next to his. There was a smile on Kuroo’s face, borderlining on innocent and cheerful, dorky, and Tsukishima could feel his cheeks start to flush.

He may or may not have a had a subtle crush on the older man, so much so his palms started to sweat as he mulled over his thoughts.

 _Was it okay for someone to just plop themselves down next to someone so easily?_ Tsukishima didn't think so, but even still, he couldn't bring himself to turn him away as he stared at Kuroo. The bedhead was grinning from ear to ear in a provoking manner as Tsukishima a subtle shade of pink.

“That is, unless you already have a partner, do you?” Kuroo scooted an inch closer to Tsukishima, heat rising and heart racing through the blond as he looked away.

They certainly didn't call Kuroo the provoking master for nothing, but Tsukishima had a hard time discerning what that coy tone really meant. It sounded flirty, but not, serious, but not. And if it wasn't for everyone else around him starting to pull out some clay, Tsukishima may have just continued to stand there in silence, mulling over his thoughts.

“I’ll go get the clay.” Tsukishima sighed, a huff escaping him as he walked to the other side of the room, keeping his head turned as he tried not to make eye contact.

“That’s the spirit, Tsukki. Make sure to make me look beautiful.” Kuroo purred, and it took everything in Tsukishima not to roll his eyes.

Tsukishima reached up to one of the cabinets, it was mainly used to store paint and other art supplies, but today there were bags of clay in it, wet and gray. He knew this project was probably going to be the death of him, being assigned a project so messy and used in a room filled with immature college students was only going to end one way. And of all things he had Kuroo as his partner, it would be a miracle if he even survived today.

Still, that beating in his heart told him otherwise, quickening as he returned to that long, white desk and setting the bag of clay down. Kuroo hadn't moved from his position, sitting in the chair as he rested one hand on the side of his face. His breathing moving slowly in an up and down rhythm as they split the clay from the bag in two.

His fingers and nails instantly dug into the soft, wet material, forming the base of the bust and a shape that resembled the circle of a head. Tsukishima made the conscious choice to roll up his sleeves while he had the chance, the gray colored clay already smearing across his skin and making its way up his arms.

Tsukishima glanced over to his right to keep an eye on Kuroo, a serious and composed expression as his hands moved away at the clay on his end. He watched for a moment as Kuroo pressed his fingers into the squishy clay, digging his nails in and molding it into an oblong shape. His appeared more like a blob than the head-shape Tsukishima’s had, which admittedly made the blond chuckle.

Tsukishima tried to sneak a glance at Kuroo without being too obvious, staring at the way his hair framed his face, bedhaad and all. The way his nose scrunched up just a little bit, the way his lips were stuck in a pout, and don’t even get him started on the glint in his eyes when Kuroo turned to meet his gaze.

“Tsukki, let me borrow your glasses.” Kuroo boasted, reaching his hands over and instantly pulling the black frames off of Tsukishima’s face. It happened so fast that Tsukishima barely knew what was going on.

“Huh-Hey!” Tsukishima glared, startled and slightly annoyed as he figured out what just happened and he attempted to reach over and grab them, failing of course.

Kuroo’s piece soon began to resemble a head, a long neck extending out into a circle figure as he held Tsukishima’s glasses a few inches away from the clay. It took everything in him not to yell and immediately reclaim them, but he decided to watch curiously instead.

“And what exactly are you doing?” Tsukishima cocked his head to the side, lowering his tone as his vision slowly blurred. He struggled to focus in on what Kuroo was doing, all Tsukishima could see was that bedhead of hair and the gray blob he was working with.

“I need them for reference, Tsukki. How else am I supposed to sculpt them?”

“I thought I asked you to stop calling me that?” Tsukishima turned his head away, trying not to blush as he heard Kuroo utter that _not_ adorable nickname he gave him again. “And I don’t know, but how am I supposed to work on my piece if I can’t see?”

“You can’t see, Tsukki? Are you blind without your glasses? You do look kind of cute, though.”

“That’s not the point.” Tsukishima turned, facing Kuroo again and grabbing his frames out of the other man's hand.

His eyes focused on the transformed blob on their table, this time only with a slightly different looking head, with small lines protruding across the side of the face. Tsukishima assumed those to be the sides of the frames for his glasses, but he was having a hard time connecting the two. It really was terrible, and at a time like this, Tsukishima found himself wondering why Kuroo was even taking an art class to begin with. Not that his was any better.

“The point is we need to sculpt each other from looking and feeling one another’s faces, not from stealing my glasses and -” Tsukishima didn't mean to word it so bluntly, but the second he heard himself say those words out loud, he knew it was too late. It was all Kuroo needed to hear and Tsukishima’s terrible fate had been sealed for the rest of the day.

“One touch and you lose your hands.” Tsukishima cut him off, words harsh with just the right amount of scorn where all he had to do was just glare at Kuroo and he stopped in his place.

It was empowering to feel like he had some sort of hold over him, but Tsukishima retracted himself, softening his gaze. He didn't want to ruin the mood completely, so he let Kuroo speak up again, regardless of how perverted the thought may have been.

“Why don’t you touch me then, Tsukki?” Kuroo raised an eyebrow that Tsukishima caught on to. He felt his entire body stiffen as he tried to process what Kuroo said and still form a response.

“E-excuse me-” Tsukishima stopped mid-sentence, flushing a bright shade of red as Kuroo reached forward and grabbed ahold of one of his hands. Both their hands coated in messy, sticky clay as Tsukishima’s fingertips made contact with Kuroo’s skin.

“You can touch me, Tsukki. It’s only fair.” Kuroo cooed, pulling Tsukishima’s hands closer and letting them rub up against his cheek. Tsukishima’s blush traveling further down his neck as he felt Kuroo’s warmth. His face was soft and gentle, ticklish even as Tsukishima saw a smile appearing on Kuroo.

“Unless of course, you think you’re good enough to do it without touching my face, _Tsukishima_.” Kuroo bat his long eyelashes, letting his words linger as Tsukishima retracted his hands from Kuroo’s skin. He could feel a new emotion running through him as Kuroo attempted to provoke him, and in that moment Tsukishima truly did feel like he lost control of himself.

Kuroo’s skin was soft, smooth, not what he was expecting at all. Tsukishima made sure to diligently run his fingers over every inch of the other man, pressing his fingers into him delicately as he traced his skin.

He started with the cheeks, soft and smooth, feeling his well defined cheekbones as Kuroo stuck out his lower lip. Then running his fingers over to the nose, feeling the way it was curved and the way it was shaped as he pressed against the bridge. He then traced his way up to the forehead and the hair, touching the hairline and running his fingers through the strands. It was just as tangled as he had imagined but Tsukishima didn't seem to mind.There was a certain charm to it, and Tsukishima thought that he liked the feeling of it against his skin.

Finally, Tsukishima made his way down to the other side of Kuroo’s face, the opposite end that he had started with. His hand caressing his brow bone and moving to touch his other cheek, finishing up with his jaw and sliding slightly inwards to touch the lips. Their eyes locked for a moment and Tsukishima could see Kuroo peering at him with amusement, like he was plotting.

Tsukishima didn't think much of it until now, but there was something erotic about touching someone’s lips. Feeling how soft they were, the way they curved, and the way they were coated with just the right amount of balm that made Tsukishima want to smash his lips against Kuroo’s.

_No._

Tsukishima wouldn't allow himself to think these thoughts. Kuroo was cute, but that was no reason to get all mushy just because he was touching him. They were just project partners for today, and Tsukishima knew that he needed to remain rational and focused, and with any luck, Kuroo would too.

“You’re really good with your hands, aren't you, Tsukki?” Kuroo winked, that same sly grin returning as Tsukishima pulled his hand away.

Nevermind. It seemed that Kuroo had no intention of being rational about this at all. Every other thing out of Kuroo’s mouth was a come-on or a flirt, and Tsukishima didn't know how much more he could take.

“What? Don’t be ridiculous. How can you even say that. I have never-” Tsukishima rose his voice, his hands trembling down at his side as he tried to gather his thoughts.

Before he could even process the rest of his sentence, he was soon cut off by two familiar voices on the other side of the room, loud and basting as they grabbed Kuroo and his attention.

“Ah! Impressive, Bokuto.”

“Isn't it great, Akaashi?”

Bokuto Koutaro and Akaashi Keiji, some of their fellow classmates, were happily working away at their own sculptures.

Out of the corner of his eye, Tsukishima could see what appeared like a complete sculpture. One Bokuto did of Akaashi. It was perfectly done, with the same nose, eyes, lips, and hair. Honestly it looked so well done that it looked identical to Akaashi. All Kuroo and Tsukishima could do was stare at each other with a dumbfounded expression, trying to gather their thoughts as one of them got the courage to speak.

“Apparently being good at art is one of Bokuto’s hidden talents.” Kuroo spoke first, calm and collected, like he was analyzing information and trying to figure out how to use it to his advantage.

“I’ll say.” Tsukishima found himself feeling speechless for the first time today, eyes wide and mouth open as he turned to Kuroo, feeling even more surprised as he saw the glint of determination in Kuroo’s eyes.

Well, Tsukishima was competitive enough. He wasn't going to get mad about someone else being better than him, but he didn't want someone like Bokuto boasting around about how much better he was. Tsukishima wanted to beat him.

“You know what this means, right Tsukki?” Kuroo turned his gaze back over towards Tsukishima, still with that same expression of determination they both shared. All Tsukishima could do was nod his head as Kuroo continued. “We can’t lose to them.”

 

* * *

 

“We finished!” Both Kuroo and Tsukishima celebrated in unison, peering at each other as their bodies felt like they were collapsing.

Tsukishima swore that if he had to press his fingers into that clay for another minute they were going to fall off. Exhaustion didn't even begin to describe how he was feeling.

He let his arms lazily fall to his side, rubbing the clay off of his hands as his eyes fell onto the two clay busts that were now taking over the table. Tsukishima didn't even bother seeing his own, art was never one of his strong points, but staring at the abomination Kuroo made, he suddenly lost his train of thought.

“What is that?” Tsukishima tried to hold back his laugh, cocking his head to the side and resting a hand on his hip. His eyes fell onto Kuroo’s sculptor as he tried to process what he was looking at.

“Huh? It’s obviously you, Tsukki.”

“Oh, you can’t be serious? That _thing_ doesn’t look like me. And when have I ever smiled like that?”

“I don’t know, maybe you should smile more often, Tsukki. It looks cute on you, and -” Tsukishima cut him off, a swift motion of his hands as his eyes laid onto Kuroo’s sculptor one more time.

It wasn't that it didn't resemble Tsukishima, it was just that the sculptor and him shared very little features in common with one another. They were both blond, presumably, and had glasses, but other than that it was like he was looking at the face of a stranger. Though, it wasn't like the one Tsukishima made was any better.

“And what is _that_?” Kuroo redirected Tsukishima’s attention, gesturing with his hand towards the mess that stood on the opposite side of the table.

“What?” Tsukishima shrugged, turning himself around and facing his own work of art.

He never was much of an artist, but Tsukishima thought it resembled Kuroo pretty well, or at least as identical as he could get. His sculptor had the same face shape as Kuroo, with his devilish smirk and well defined jawline, the eyes even had a glint in them, a glint like they were provoking. It wasn't life like, sure, but it still didn't fail at sending a chill down Tsukishima’s spine.

Then there was the hair, the main feature of Kuroo’s face. Tsukishima felt rather proud of the bangs, perfectly hanging over one side, hiding an eye, but it was the rest of it he was more uncertain about.

Kuroo’s hair didn't obey any natural rules, so when it came to sculpting it, Tsukishima found it more difficult than he cared to admit.

_How does someone sculpt a bedhead anyway?_

Kuroo’s hair stuck out in every direction, getting it to lay in just the right way took more effort than Tsukishima was willing to muster. In turn it didn't look anything like him, and Tsukishima could tell Kuroo was now the one holding back his laughter.

“What do you mean _what_? That doesn't look a thing like me, Tsukki.” Kuroo curled his hands around his stomach, leaning himself forward as a hyena-like laugh came out of him.

“Oh, at least mine actually looks like you. All I did was mess up the hair, yours doesn't even have the same face shape as I do!”

“What? Oh, come on! It totally looks like you. See, if you smiled so more and -” Kuroo stepped forward, placing his now clay free hands on the sides of Tsukishima’s face.

His hands gently pushed at the skin until Tsukishima’s stern frown turned into a subtle smirk. Kuroo’s fingers were soft, tickling him as a hot sensation ran through his skin where Kuroo touched. It felt like he was on fire with passion as the corners of his lips barely budging as Kuroo got a new reaction out of him. Though, Tsukishima had yet to discern if that reaction was good or bad.

In the heat of the moment Kuroo moved his body forward even more. His fingers touching Tsukishima’s chin as the blond felt himself part his lips in preparation. He didn't know exactly how things escalated to these sort of events, but he wasn't complaining. Kuroo was gorgeous, after all, and he may have had a little crush on him.

Their lips pressed against one anothers, with just a small peck as Tsukishima drew in a breath, hoping to prolong it. He tried not to focus on the way Kuroo’s lips tasted, or the way his tongue felt so tender as it moved against his own. Or the way he felt a heat radiate within him as his eyes slowly lifted open.

He didn't pay much attention to the area around him. Most of the students had already finished their projects and went home, even the professor had left, but that didn't stop Tsukishima from opening his eyes and looking around the room for a glimpse of someone else. To his surprise, he found none.

It wasn't a particularly long kiss, but that still didn't mean Tsukishima still didn't feel a sense of contentment run within him as their lips departed. His face became a bright shade of red as he struggled to catch his breath, all while Kuroo beamed at him with that same smirk.

“Tsukki.” His words purred in Tsukishima’s ear, he could feel a tingling sensation as he felt himself being caught off guard, but he couldn't say that he hated it. “Go out with me?”

Tsukishima froze in place, he straightened up his position as he tried to distract himself with the small amount of clay residue leftover on his fingers. He ran over it slowly, still feeling the rough texture as he stared at Kuroo.

The taller man had a genuine expression about him that made Tsukishima smile on the inside. He had no reason to say yes, but he had no reason to say no either. So, he said the only thing that he could think of to say in a time like this.

“Sure, Kuroo.”

“Just sure? You don’t wanna come back to my place Tsukki? We can work on our sculpting skills together, and I can maybe show you -”

“Show you how to sculpt something that actually looks like a person?” Tsukishima grinned, he knew that wasn't what Kuroo was going for, but he wasn't exactly in the mood for perverse comments, they seemed too immature. Or maybe he wasn't in the mood for them because he knew he wouldn't be able to control himself if him and Kuroo spent anymore time alone.

“I was going to show you how to sculpt hair, but if you’d be willing to _teach_ me, I wouldn't complain.” Kuroo laughed at his own joke and Tsukishima tried not to roll his eyes.

Tsukishima knew what he was implying, but once again, he found himself not hating the idea. He thought that it could even be fun doing this again with Kuroo. Teaching him, touching him, kissing him. It sounded like a such a good idea that Tsukishima was looking forward to it, just like he was looking forward to spending more time with Kuroo, sculpting or not. He was starting to think that group projects weren't so bad after all.

“I like you, Tsukki.” Kuroo stepped forward, an eager appearance as if he was waiting for Tsukishima’s approval.

All Tsukishima did was nod his head and allow Kuroo to kiss him again, tender lips pressing against his once again as he smiled and leaned in. He let the words flow out of him without a second thought.

“I like you too, Kuroo.”

**Author's Note:**

> A fic I wrote for [cawnvictofmurder](http://cawnvictofmurder.tumblr.com) for the KuroTsuki exchange.  
> I hope you like it <3  
> I've never taken an art class before so I had no idea how sculpting and using clay works, but I had fun writing this.
> 
> Thanks for reading <3  
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated  
> Feel free to come chat with me on tumblr @ Tettsuroo


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